Synopsis

This book offers advice on the dietary needs of those who participate in sports, leading readers through both theory and practice.

Over the years, scientists have been amassing a growing store of knowledge about the dietary needs associated with different athletic pursuits, including activity-specific information on how much of what kind of foods to eat when. Part One of the book draws on the latest research to discuss how the body accesses and uses energy during exercise, how it recovers afterwards, how energy supply and demand can be balanced, general principles of meal planning, and differences that should be considered according to one’s life stage. Part Two applies the principles discussed in Part One to specific activities, outlining recommended daily menu plans and food combinations for long distance running, cycling, triathlon, swimming, basketball, baseball and so forth—12 sports in all, including wheelchair rugby and blind soccer.

The volume is ideal as a sports nutrition textbook for students studying to be certified nutritionists, as well as for those at any stage in life who wish to enjoy participatory sports or engage in physical conditioning to improve their quality of life. The suggested meal plans can be put into practice by anyone.

About the AuthorsYukari Kawano (1954–) earned her Doctor of Health Science degree at the University of Tokushima. Since 2003 she has been a professor in the Faculty of Applied Biosciences at Tokyo University of Agriculture.

Shigeho Tanaka (1964–) graduated from the Department of Physical and Health Education in the Faculty of Education at the University of Tokyo in 1987, and went on to complete advanced studies in physical education in the Graduate School in 1993. He is chair of the Department of Nutritional Science at the National Institutes of Biomedical Innovation, Health and Nutrition (NIBIOHN).

Yūko Mekata graduated from the Faculty of Home Economics at Nakamura Gakuen College in 1990. She earned her doctorate in food and nutritional science in the Graduate School of Tokyo University of Agriculture in 2008. She is currently an associate professor in the Faculty of Health and Nutrition at Bunkyō University.